Graduates’ perception of the relationship between technical and vocational education and training and graduates’ employment prospects
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35564/jmbe.2025.0020Keywords:
graduates, employability, human capital, tvet, skilled , Technical , Vocational , Training , EducationAbstract
Industrialization and modernization have raised demand for skilled workers in many fields. Government and other institutions have promoted Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes to meet this demand by providing job-ready skills and knowledge. Despite these efforts, there are concerns about the effectiveness of TVET in terms of graduate employment prospects in Bangladesh. A clear understanding of TVET graduates' attitudes and experiences is essential to improving TVET effectiveness. The online survey data from these graduates provided valuable insights into their learning, skill development, and employment outcomes. Data was acquired from 152 respondents (n = 152) using convenience sampling and snowball sampling techniques. This study analysed the acquired data using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and a multiple regression model in the SPSS programme. According to the findings, TVET graduates have an overwhelming perception of a positive relationship between TVET programmes and their employment prospects. The current study also identified two main aspects or factors, namely the 'skills development factor' and the 'employment benefits factor,' which can influence TVET graduates' perceptions. However, of these two components, the skills development aspect has a very high and significant impact on graduates' perceptions, while the employment benefits factor has no statistical effect.
Downloads
References
Almendarez, L. (2013). Human Capital Theory: Implications for Educational Development in Belize and the Caribbean. Caribbean Quarterly, 59(3–4), 21–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/00086495.2013.11672495
Atchoarena, D., & Delluc, A. (2002). Revisiting Technical and Vocational Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: An update on trends, innovations and challenges. New Trends in Technical and Vocational Education. International Institute for Educational Planning. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED480334
Becker, G. S. (1962, October). Investment in Human Capital: A Theoretical Analysis. Journal of Political Economy, 70(5, Part 2), 9–49. https://doi.org/10.1086/258724
Bennell, P. (1999, March 1). Learning to change: Skills development among the economically vulnerable and socially excluded in developing countries. https://www.ilo.org/employment/Whatwedo/Publications/WCMS_120372/lang--en/index.htm
Biavaschi, C., Eichhorst, W., Giulietti, C., Kendzia, M. J., Muravyev, A., Pieters, J., Rodríguez-Planas, N., Schmidl, R., & Zimmermann, K. F. (2013). Youth unemployment and vocational training. Foundations and Trends® in Microeconomics, 9(1–2), 1–157. https://doi.org/10.1561/0700000058
Cusumano, S. (2017). Does Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Enhance Employability through Motivation for Lifelong Learning? Empirical Evidence from Uganda. [Pdf Does Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Enhance Employability through Motivation for Lifelong Learning? Empirical Evidence from Uganda.]. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://arno.uvt.nl/show.cgi?fid=143195
Dandala, M. (2021). The Role of Technical and Vocational Education and Training in Economic Development in the O.R Tambo District Municipality [MA Thesis]. Nelson Mandela University. http://hdl.handle.net/10948/52413
De, A., Fuente, L., Ciccone, A., Campanelli, V., De Almeida, L., Wright, S., Ferreira, L., Belmonte, A., Domeland-Narváez, D., & Duro, J. (2003). Human capital in a global and Knowledge-Based economy. Education + Training, 45(8/9). https://doi.org/10.1108/et.2003.00445hae.003
Deissinger, T., & Gonon, P. (2016). Stakeholders in the German and Swiss vocational educational and training system. Journal of Education and Training, 58(6), 568–577. https://doi.org/10.1108/et-02-2016-0034
Diop, M. (2020). The Effectiveness of TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) in Bridging the Skills Gap in Rwanda [Review of The Effectiveness of TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) in Bridging the Skills Gap in Rwanda]. https://doi.org/10.37200/ijpr/v23i4/pr190421
Hoftijzer, M., Levin, V., Santos, I., & Weber, M. (2023, March 10). TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) in the times of COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities. World Bank Blogs. https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/tvet-technical-and-vocational-education-and-training-times-covid-19-challenges-and
Hughes, J. (2005). The role of teacher knowledge and learning experiences in forming Technology-Integrated Pedagogy. The Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 13(2), 277–302. http://browningmedportfolio.weebly.com/uploads/2/3/8/1/23811553/hughes_2005_tech-integrated_pedagogy.pdf
ILO. (2012). TVET Reform: Design an inclusive skills development program [Review of TVET Reform: Design an inclusive skills development program]. In www.ilo.org/publns. ILO Publications. https://doi.org/10.54394/yexs2066
Kanwar, A., Balasubramanian, K., & Carr, A. (2019). Changing the TVET PARADIGM: New models for lifelong learning. International Journal of Training Research, 17(sup1), 54–68. https://doi.org/10.1080/14480220.2019.1629722
Kazmi, S. W. (2007). Vocational education and skills development: A case of Pakistan. SAARC Journal of Human Resource Development, 3(1), 105-117.
Kerre , B. W., & Hollander, A. (2009, January). National Qualifications Frameworks in Africa. In International Handbook of Education for the Changing World of Work : Bridging Academic and Vocational Learning, 2899-2915. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5281-1_190
Khilji, B. A., Khilji, Kakar, Z. K., Subhan, S., Preston University, Islamabad, Pakistan, & National University of Modern Languages (NUML), Islamabad, Pakistan. (2012). Impact of vocational training and skill development on economic growth in Pakistan. In World Applied Sciences Journal (Vol. 17, Issue 10, pp. 1298–1302). https://idosi.org/wasj/wasj17(10)12/10.pdf
Kilbrink, N. (2012). Theory and Practice in Technical Vocational Education: Pupils’; Teachers’ and Supervisors’ Experiences. PATT 26 Conference; Technology Education in the 21st Century; Stockholm; Sweden; 26-30 June; 2012, 073, 247–252. https://ep.liu.se/ecp/073/029/ecp12073029.pdf
Krueger, D., & Kumar, K. B. (2004). Skill-Specific rather than General Education: A Reason for US–Europe Growth Differences? Journal of Economic Growth, 9(2), 167–207. https://doi.org/10.1023/b:joeg.0000031426.09886.bd
Kuepie, M., Nordman, C. J., & Roubaud, F. (2009, September). Education and earnings in urban West Africa. Journal of Comparative Economics, 37(3), 491–515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jce.2008.09.007
Maclean, R., & Wilson, D. (Eds.). (2009). International Handbook of Education for the Changing World of Work. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5281-1
Okolie, U. C., Nwosu, H. E., & Mlanga, S. (2019). Graduate employability. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, 9(4), 620–636. https://doi.org/10.1108/heswbl-09-2018-0089
Labour market outcomes of vocational education in Europe. (2022, December 14). CEDEFOP. https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/publications/5532
Omar, A. R. C., Ishak, S., & Jusoh, M. A. (2020). The impact of covid-19 movement control order on smes’ businesses and survival strategies. Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, 16(2). https://doi.org/10.17576/geo-2020-1602-11
Pimentel, J. (2010). A note on the usage of Likert Scaling for research data analysis. USM R&D Journal, 18(2), 109–112. https://www.usm.edu.ph/onlinejournal/index.php/USMJournal/article/download/98/73
Pitan, O. S. (2017). Graduate employees’ generic skills and training needs. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, 7(3), 290–303. https://doi.org/10.1108/heswbl-04-2017-0026
Sala, H., & Silva, J. I. (2012, August 18). Labor productivity and vocational training: evidence from Europe. Journal of Productivity Analysis, 40(1), 31–41. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11123-012-0304-0
Salman, M. S. (2022, October 19). Technical education thrives on good job prospects. The Business Post. https://businesspostbd.com/education/technical-education-thrives-on-good-job-prospects-2022-10-20
Sarr, F., & Ba, M. (2017). The Capability Approach and Evaluation of the Well-Being in Senegal: An Operationalization with the Structural Equations Models. Modern Economy, 08(01), 90–110. https://doi.org/10.4236/me.2017.81007
Schultz, T. W. (1961). Investment in Human Capital. The American Economic Review, 51(1), 1–17. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1818907
Shi, Y., & Bangpan, M. (2022). Young people’s participation experiences of technical and vocational education and training interventions in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review of qualitative evidence. Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40461-022-00136-4
Subrahmanyam, G. (2013, June 25). Tackling youth unemployment through TVET. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260341535_Tackling_youth_unemployment_through_TVET
Tomlinson, M. G. (2017). Forms of graduate capital and their relationship to graduate employability. Journal of Education and Training, 59(4), 338–352. https://doi.org/10.1108/et-05-2016-0090
Trochim, W. M. K. (2005). Research Methods: The Concise Knowledge Base. Atomic Dog Publishing, Inc.
UNESCO. (2016). Enhancing Relevance in TVET: Review of Progress in the Asia-Pacific since 2012. UNESCO-UNEVOC. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000243365
Warner, R. M. (2013). Applied statistics: From bivariate through multivariate techniques, 2nd ed. Sage Publications. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-37548-000
Winch, C. (2013). The attractiveness of TVET. Revisiting global trends in TVET: Reflections on theory and practice, 86-122. https://unevoc.unesco.org/fileadmin/up/2013_epub_revisiting_global_trends_in_tvet_chapter3.pdf

Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal of Management and Business Education

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
License terms at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/legalcode